The Vahdat Hall (Persian: تالار وحدت, romanized: Tālār-e Vahdat),[2] previously known as Roudaki Hall (also spelled Roodaki or Rudaki; Persian: تالار رودکی, romanized: Tālār e Rudaki) is a performing arts complex in Tehran, Iran.
History
Around the 1950s and 1970s, the Iranian national stage had become the most famous performing scene for known international artists and troupes in West Asia,[3] with the Vahdat Hall constructed in the capital of the country to function as the national stage for opera and ballet performances.
Construction
The complex was designed by architect Eugene Aftandilian, influenced by the Vienna State Opera, and was constructed during a period of ten years starting in 1957.[1] It was equipped with the latest lighting and sound system technologies of the time, with revolving and moving stages. The main stage consists of three different levels (podiums). The auditorium seats 1200 and has two tiers of boxes and balconies. The venue was fully supplied by Siemens Electrics. The main curtain in proscenium has a motif of a phoenix rising from the ashes, with the style of Persian miniature.
Just before the completion of Tehran's new opera house, Nejad Ahmadzadeh, artistic director of the Iranian National Ballet Company, was sent by the Ministry of Culture and Arts to the United States to visit their opera houses and study administrative, organizational, and technical constructions of American opera establishments that were deemed to be the most modern in the West. At his return, he was appointed as manager of the upcoming opera house, and established the technical, administrative, and artistic sections of the Vahdat Hall. The constructions of the hall were eventually completed in 1967.
Inauguration

Como parte de la Revolución Blanca , el Salón Vahdat de Teherán fue inaugurado por Mohammad Reza Shah y Shahbanu Farah Pahlavi el 26 de octubre de 1967 con la representación de El Festival Rústico , la primera ópera persa, compuesta por Ahmad Pejman . Dos semanas de funciones con lleno total a cargo de conjuntos internacionales marcaron las festividades de la coronación . Numerosas orquestas, cantantes de ópera y compañías de danza fueron invitadas a actuar para la ocasión.
La sala alberga a la Orquesta Sinfónica de Teherán , la Orquesta de la Ópera de Teherán y la Compañía Nacional de Ballet de Irán . Otras compañías, conjuntos y artistas, como los bailarines folclóricos iraníes , también han utilizado el escenario de la Sala Vahdat para sus actuaciones.
Producciones y presentaciones de invitados



Antes de la Revolución de 1979

Ballet
- Bijan y Manijeh (1975)
- La Bayadère (temporada 1972-1973)
- El mito de la creación (1971)
- El Cascanueces (1971)
- Bolero
- El pájaro de fuego (1967)
- Carmina Burana
- El niño brujo
- La fuente de Bajchisarái (temporada 73-74)
- El lago de los cisnes (temporada 1971-72)
- Petroushka
- Las sílfides
- Giselle (Temporada 1970–71)
- La Fille Mal Gardée
- Romeo y Julieta (1968)
- Sherezade
- Coppélia (Temporada 1972–72)
- Señorita Julie
- Cenicienta (1969)
- Serenata
- La Bella Durmiente (1978)
Ópera
- El Festival Rústico de 1967
- Héroe de Sahand (Delavareh Sahand) 1968
- Pardis y Parisa
- La traviata
- Orfeo y Eurídice
- Madama Butterfly
- Turandot (1971)
- La bohème
- Carmen
- Nabucco (1976)
- Falstaff (1977)
- Werther (1977)
- La flauta mágica (1978)
En el Roudaki Hall se organizaron diversos festivales nacionales e internacionales, entre ellos:
- Festival Internacional de Cine
- Festival de Ballet y Danza
- Festival de Danza Folclórica
- Festival anual de cultura y artes
Desde la inauguración del Roudaki Hall en 1967 hasta las últimas representaciones en la temporada de otoño de 1978, artistas de música, ópera y danza de renombre mundial visitaron Irán para presentar sus obras. Las presentaciones de los artistas y conjuntos invitados incluyeron:
Compañías de ballet invitadas
- Ballet Kirov (Ballet Mariinski)
- El Ballet Igor Moiseyev
- El Gran Ballet Clásico de Francia
- Conjunto Flamenco Antonio Gades
- Ballet de Stuttgart
- Ballet de Berlín
- Le Ballet de XXe Siécle ( Ballet del siglo XX )
- Teatro holandés Dans (1977)
Guest ballet artists (dancers / choreographers)
Guest opera singers
Ingrid Rezai Anayatolla Rezai Monier Vaquilli
Guest music ensembles
Guest musicians / conductors
Other presentations
- Marcel Marceau, the pantomime artist (1978)
After the 1979 Revolution
Roudaki Hall has remained the most important venue of Tehran. Concerts of traditional Iranian music, pop, and classical symphonic and orchestral music are staged regularly. After 1979 Revolution, Poetry Council at Office of Poetry and Music of Ministry of culture was formed in Roudaki Hall to preserve music in Iran. Some famous poets worked there, like: Mehrdad Avesta, Ahmad NikTalab (after him, Babak Niktalab), Mohammad Ali Bahmani,[4] Moshfegh Kashani.[5]
Among the presentations after the 1979 Revolution are:
Concerts
Artists
Events
- Tehran Art Expo.[6]


Guest presentation
- Dundee Repertory Theater
Specifications

Total capacity of the hall is about 750 seats; with 500 seats in the main hall, and 250 seats in the balconies.
Operational and artistic directors
General directors
- Hamed Rowhani (1967–?)
- Sadi Hassani (in between the other two)
- Abedin Zanganeh (?–1979)
- ? (1979–?) (after the 1979 Revolution and before the re-organization of the hall in 2003)
Following a legislation from the Parliament of Iran in 2003, the operation management of the hall was reorganized. A new non-governmental public foundation was established in order to be in charge of the Roudaki Hall. The CEOs of Roudaki Foundation, responsible for the operation of Roudaki Hall have been:
- Mehdi Massoudshahi (2003–2008)
- Ali Asghar Amirnia (2008–2010)
- Hossein Parsaee (2010–2011)
- Alireza Hosseini (2011–2013)
- Hossein Seyfi (2013–2014)
- Bahram Jamali (2014–2016)
- Ali Akbar Safipour (2016–2019)
- Mehdi Afzali (2019–2022)
- Majid Zeinolabedin (2022–2023)
- Mehdi Salem (2023)
- Mohammad Allahyari Foumani (2023–present)
Ballet directors
- Nejad Ahmadzadeh (1967–1976)
- The Iranian National Ballet Company was founded in 1958 and moved to the Roudaki Hall in 1967.
- Ali Pourfarrokh (1976–1979) held the position until disbanding of the Iranian National Ballet.
Opera directors
- Enayat Rezai (1967–1979)[7]
Naamloos document
Music directors
- Farhad Meshkat
- Alexander Rahbari[8] (2015–2016)
- Shahrdad Rouhani[9] (2016–2020)
- Nassir Heidarian-Rasty[10] (2022–2023)
- Manouchehr Sahbai[11] (2023–2025)
- Nassir Heidarian-Rasty (2025–present)
Gallery
Auditorium of the Hall.- The ceiling of the Hall.
Eastern balconies and the special position.- Second floor of the complex.
Exterior of the complex.
References
- Citations
- 12CAOI: Tehran Vahdat Hall
- ↑Don Rubin, ed. (1998), The World Encyclopedia of Contemporary Theatre, London: Routledge, ISBN 0415059283, OCLC 32008932
- ↑Kiann, Nima (2015). The History of Ballet in Iran. Wiesbaden: Reichert Publishingi
- ↑"محمدعلی بهمنی", ویکیپدیا، دانشنامهٔ آزاد (in Persian), 2020-11-10, retrieved 2020-12-19
- ↑"مشفق کاشانی", ویکیپدیا، دانشنامهٔ آزاد (in Persian), 2020-06-24, retrieved 2020-12-19
- ↑"Tehran Art Expo to open on June 17". Tehran Times. June 16, 2012. Archived from the original on November 6, 2013.
- ↑ Notes on Roudaki Hall in Tehran, Iran – A Celebration of Opera by Liliana Osses Adams
- ↑"'Bitterest day of my life': Maestro quits Tehran - Slippedisc".
- ↑"Conductor of Tehran Symphony Orchestra Shahrdad Rohani quits". Tehran Times. May 25, 2020.
- ↑"Nasir Heidarian takes baton in Tehran Symphony Orchestra". Honaronline. September 14, 2024.
- ↑"Iranian Musician Appointed As Tehran Symphony Orchestra Permanent Conductor - Iran Front Page". ifpnews.com. September 30, 2023.
- Bibliography
- Fajr Theater Festival
- Kiann, Nima. (2000). Persian Dance and Its Forgotten History
- Kiann, Nima (2015). La historia del ballet en Irán. Wiesbaden: Reichert Publishing.
Enlaces externos
- Artículo sobre Enayat Rezai en operanostalgia (1967-1979)
- Sitio web oficial de la Fundación Roudaki
- Les Ballets Persans , la recreación de la Compañía Nacional de Ballet de Irán.
- Cronología de la Compañía Nacional de Ballet de Irán y Les Ballets Persans
35°41′59.12″N 51°24′40″E / 35.6997556°N 51.41111°E / 35.6997556; 51.41111
Operanostalgia Enayat Rezai
- Teatros en Irán
- Teatros de ópera en Irán
- Locales de música terminados en 1967.
- Edificios y estructuras en Teherán
- Cultura en Teherán
- Atracciones turísticas en Teherán